The invention relates in general to devices for spreading liquid liner on the interior of rocket tubes and in particular to a device for spreading liquid liner in a rocket tube that has deposited therein a continuous bead of liner. After the liner is spread, another apparatus, such as a spinner, further distributes the liner in the rocket tube.
Rocket motor tubes are lined with a fire retardant liner to prevent the propellant from burning through the tube wall. The rocket tubes are, for example, about three feet long and two to three inches in diameter. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/927,647, filed on Aug. 25, 2004, entitled “Apparatus For Applying Liquid Liner To Rocket Tube,” having the same inventor as the present application, discloses an apparatus for dispensing a continuous bead of liner into a rocket motor tube. The contents of the above noted previous application are hereby expressly incorporated by reference.
After depositing the continuous bead of liner in the rocket tube, the liner must be spread around to cover the interior of the rocket tube. The present invention uses a powered brush and a rocket tube support or holder to accomplish the spreading operation. After the brushing operation, another apparatus (not part of the present invention) is used to spin the tubes to further uniformly apply the liner to the interior of the tube.
The invention will be better understood, and further objects, features, and advantages thereof will become more apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.